RMG gold assures all artifacts are safe
By Tatia Megeneishvili
Tuesday, May 19
Prior to the court hearing, RMG gold, a company undertaking mining works in the Sakdrisi Gold mine that might be one of the oldest gold mines in the world, makes a statement.
The company states that all the artifacts of value for scientific study have been removed from the site and saved.
The company addresses all interested sides to refrain from further straining the situation.
RMG Gold also referred to a special group established for protecting the Sakdrisi mine to refrain from protesting.
“Such acts might influence the court verdict,” the company stated.
Before making a final decision the court decided to view all aspects of the argument.
The RMG Gold assured that the court representatives, interested individuals and experts, who have already browsed the area, found nothing valuable there.
The Sakdrisi group who are attempting to protect the mine stresses that both the government and the company are destroying the one of the country's most important historical heritage sites and refuse to suspend their activities of defending the area.
German experts believe that the Sakdrisi gold mine might be one of the oldest gold mines in the world, dating back almost 5,000 years. Sakdrisi was discovered in the early 2000s and excavations began in 2006. It was initially given the status of a cultural heritage site but this was revoked by the Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection in 2013. However, the court later annulled the decision on June 16, 2014. The court said the ministry violated procedures, and made the decision to suspend the historical monument status of Sakdrisi gold mine without archaeological studies. Currently the issue is still being discussed at the court.
